Pages

Sunday, 29 November 2015

We are on to part 9 and the pre-gunpowder artillery. Stone throwers and bolt throwers have their uses too.

Dwarf Stone Throwers

These beauties aren't the original Citadel or Marauder models. Instead, I picked up some Foundry fantasy miniatures in a sale, and they are charming too. They definitely have an Oldhammer / 80s look to them. I've added some greenstuff ammunition to one of the models to help bring it to life a bit more.

Dwarf Stone Thrower and Crew

Dwarf Stone Thrower and Crew

Next up, we have some bolt throwers, for more targeted shooting. These are the classic models - small and with a practical look.

Dwarven Bolt Throwers

These guys really need to see some more games. I am really hoping to make the Oldhammer 2016 day next year and would love to take these guys.

Friday, 27 November 2015

Today we have part 8 of the Dwarf Army Showcase and it is time for the big guns.

Dwarf Organ Gun

These are old resin models from Scotia Grendel, and I like the pseudo-medieval style which fits well with the rest of the army. However, they are (a little bit) oversized.These come as a set, which consists of a mortar, organ gun, cannon, and 2 barricades, all made in a good quality resin.

Dwarf Mortar (model by Scotia Grendel)

For better or worse, this cannon could probably blast everything off the field. It could probably give an Earthshaker Cannon a run for its money.

Dwarf Cannon

I would love to get hold of some smaller versions of a four wheeled cannon like this (please let me know in the comments if you know where to get one!).

At the moment I just have the one set painted, but I have a second in storage and would eventually love to get a third, so that I can have three of each machine, and give the dwarves a fighting chance against all the nasty orcs, goblins and skaven.

On discovering all this, I set out some years ago to build a small dwarven cavalry arm, with the intention of using them occasionally as Empire allies in Warhammer Fantasy Battle games. I managed to get hold of at least one of each (except the Marauder one), and used some additional greenstuff to convert musicians and a mounted hero. Apart from the hornblower, all the conversions were done with greenstuff on top of the models, so are fully reversible.

One of my all-time favourite conversions is this cavalry drummer. The drums are blobs of greenstuff, and the stick is a short length of brass rod. Everything is on top of the underlying model so it has not been damaged. I'm quite proud because I think it looks really subtle and is in-keeping with the pose of the model.

If you want to get hold of some dwarf cavalry, then several other makers produce fine dwarf cavalry models if you want to avoid eBay prices. Mirliton makes the old Grenadier dwarfs on bears, White Knight produces renaissance-style dwarfs on ponies (much like the Maruader style), TheBattleForge produces traditional dark age/viking style ones (with ponies similar to the GW ones) for reasonable prices. I also like Essex Miniatures' dwarf cavalry. These are again by Bob Olley (but they are big so will not mix with GW). Asgard Miniatures also made dwarven cavalry - the riders are ok, but the horses are a bit odd. But you might be able to get some cheap.

I am going to have to crack these guys out for a game sometime - maybe Oldhammer 2016 if fate allows!

Thursday, 19 November 2015

There isn't too much to say, most of the models are vanilla, with only one or two slight modifications like repositioned arms here and there. I've kept up with my varied hair colours, as is my usual. I found the Trollslayers to be a lot of fun to paint due to all the wonderful crazy hair.

My favourite has got to be this guy - the enraged Grim Ironjaw model. I am sure he must have been inspired by B.A. Barracas (Mr. T) from the A-Team (an awesome 80s TV show)

Tuesday, 17 November 2015

Its part5 and now we've got the Shieldmaidens. I had the idea to do the unit yonks ago, in one of my zanier collecting moments - I think it must have been inspired by browsing through old catalogues and seeing the variety of models available. There were a reasonable number of female dwarfs sculpted by Citadel in the early-mid 80s, including a shieldmaiden, nursemaids, thieves/assassins, a queen, and rogue types - several are incorporated within this unit.

These are a mix of old preslotta and slotta Citadel models (including several shieldmaidens from the Northern Dwarves C Series range), along with a few Asgard dwarves to bulk up the unit.

Like the Hammerer photos, these photos were taken a while back. I've added some more, including some spear-armed models from White Knight.

Sunday, 15 November 2015

By now you should have realised that I like my funky and weird beard colours, including blues, greens, and pinks and purples. These guys are a mix of old Citadel / Games Workshop types and Asgard models, with one or two OOP Dixon miniatures thrown into the mix.

These photos were taken ages ago. I actually have a few more of these now - the unit is getting on for 40 models.

Friday, 13 November 2015

Now its the turn of the 3rd Edition Bugmans Rangers (confusingly release in the Herohammer era of 4th Edition Warhammer Fantasy Battle).

I have added some plastics and chopped some of the horns off the rangers to increase variation in the unit as per my usual practice. Bugman's banner is converted from a newish dwarf shield plus an ornate old button.

I think the old norse dwarf drummer works really well with Bugman's Rangers as a stand-in musician.

Wednesday, 11 November 2015

On to post number two, and this time it is the turn of the trusty Bugmans Rangers. These guys are actually the 2nd edition of the unit; the first edition was a preslotta version with tiny (almost gnomish!) models. Alas, I have not managed to get my mitts on them yet (grr).

These guys have had a few additions - they have plastic moulded shields taken from 4th Ed plastic warriors, and I've added some extra preslotta and other old dwarf models that I think fit the look of the unit, like the nice map reader. There are just under 40 now, I think.

Monday, 9 November 2015

As promised, here is the first in the series of my Dwarf army showcase galleries. I decided to publish these after chatting with another gamer about Bugmans Rangers over on Twitter - obviously this is a better place to display everything together in a more central location.

Anyway, here are my dwarf clansmen. I mix and match models from all sorts of ranges and eras to give lots of variation and keep the painting from going stale and boring. This regiment in particular has a bit of everything in it. I wonder if you can spot all the different types (?) :)

I came back to these guys after a bit of a break - I got a bit fed up with the models, left them for a bit, and came back to them the other weekend. I've given them just a standard paint job, nothing special for me - but I'm glad to clear a bit more off the table. The kroxigor was more fun to paint because of the novelty of painting using different skin colours. I also think that my layering techniques work pretty well on lizardmen.

Both the kroxigor and the skaven deathamster will be mainly used as monsters in Warhammer Quest (WHQ). I have a small lizardman army to get painted, including a slann, temple guard, salamanders, and the obligatory skinks and saurus warriors. When it will be finished, I do not know.

Next up, I have bought a lot of the 'White Knight Renaissance Dwarves' from White Knight's Miniature Imperium. These are basically the spiritual successor to the classic Marauder miniatures renaissance / landsknecht dwarfs of the 80s and 90s, and are a more complete range. I cannot recommend them enough.

I've had these guys for ages, but never quite liked the 'knightly' look of the original models. It finally dawned on me at the weekend to swap out the big armoured heads with huge plumes for more 16th-17th century style morions and reiter/cuirassier type helmets, and this aesthetic really works well for me. The beauty of the models is that virtually all of them are modular, so head swaps are easy as pie. I am hoping to get these guys properly painted in the next few weeks.

So, in spite my efforts, the lead pile grows once again. The wargaming gods bless me and mock me in the same breath.

Next on my blogging agenda, I'll be sharing some pics of my dwarf collection over the next few blog posts. This follows on from a conversation I had on Twitter. Even though they're not new, I think blogging will be the most convenient and appropriate way of sharing the pics. So you have been warned - expect lots of dwarves for the next 2-3 weeks.

See you next time! :D

P.S. (warning - this is a plug) - if you want retro and OOP miniatures, I sell them for sane prices on my main website at robsfigures.com (plug over).

Google+ Badge

About Me

Hi, my name is Rob and I am a huge wargaming enthusiast and I have spent over 20 years involved with the hobby. I collect a variety of figures but mostly old-school 80s and early 90s Citadel / Warhammer fantasy and Grenadier, and 15mm historical (ancients to 17th century).

The aim of this site is to share my hobby with you, show new projects and WIP stuff, and share links, etc to other inspirational and great sites. So if you like wargames, toy soldiers, fantasy and sci-fi, etc, then please stick around for some fun.

I am also in the process of setting up a web shop at www.robsfigures.com, where I will be selling preowned and OOP miniatures (for sane prices!), along with painting services and other wargames products.